We Talk About Music

J.M. Dee has never been interested in standing still, and “Pretend To Hate” feels like another confident step forward for an artist who treats genre as a suggestion rather than a rule. Based in Naples, Florida after growing up just outside Washington, D.C., Dee has built a reputation on unpredictability, and this release reinforces that identity by leaning into warmth and emotional clarity rather than bombast.

On “Hood Anxiety,” East London rapper Armor steps into the light with a calm intensity that feels earned rather than performed. This is not bravado rap or confessional for shock value. Instead, it’s a measured, deeply human moment from an artist who understands that vulnerability can hit harder than volume. As a standout single from his recent album release Excuse My Mess, the track lands as one of the project’s emotional anchors, now further amplified by the arrival of its official music video.

With “Colours of Time,” Shyfrin Alliance deliver a song that feels less like a single and more like a slow, thoughtful conversation with the past. Led by Eduard Shyfrin, a UK-based progressive rock visionary whose life spans science, literature, business, and mysticism, the project continues to carve out a rare space where rock music becomes a vessel for reflection and philosophical inquiry. This latest release stands as one of the band’s most expansive and immersive moments to date, unfolding patiently over its six-plus minutes and inviting the listener to truly settle in.

With Incandescence, Smooth Retsina Glow deliver the kind of album that only comes from a band hardened by time, volume, and persistence. Released in October 2025, the Pennsylvania outfit’s sixth studio record finds them operating at full command, distilling years of lineup shifts, relentless touring, and creative experimentation into a focused statement. Across ten tracks and forty-nine minutes, the band doesn’t chase reinvention so much as refinement, proving how powerful a group can be when it truly knows itself.

With his latest single, “New Orders,” Dear Genre, the stage name of Brazilian-born musician André Cataldo, continues to solidify his reputation as a genre-defying force capable of transforming emotion into sonic grandeur. From its slow building opening to the breathtaking crescendo midway through, the track is a masterclass in tension, release, and immersive production. Drawing from a lifetime of musical exploration, Cataldo channels his early musical exposure into a composition that feels both deeply personal and expansively cinematic.

Roses in December return with “Divided and Conquered,” a blistering EP that positions the Newcastle-based band at the forefront of UK rock with an unflinching political edge. Clocking in at just 21 minutes across five tracks, the collection packs a relentless punch, pairing distortion, massive riffs, and powerhouse vocals to create a sonic statement that is quite urgent. This is punk not for nostalgia’s sake, but as a call to attention.

Jeff Hodges has spent years shaping the sounds of other artists, but with “Loco Motive,” the veteran producer turned performer steps confidently into his own spotlight. The founder of Charleston Sound Studios may be best known for engineering massive hits like Darius Rucker’s 10x-platinum “Wagon Wheel,” yet his newest chapter takes him far from Nashville, both geographically and sonically. Now based in Turks and Caicos, Hodges is channeling a newfound creativity into a vibrant fusion of heartland Americana and breezy Caribbean energy, crafting a style that feels incredibly fresh!

With Echoes, Luke Wood steps fully into his own artistic orbit, one defined by authenticity, grit, and a sound that’s as textured as it is timeless. The singer-songwriter’s second release with RCSQ Records™ captures the raw heart of Eclectic Roots Groove™, a genre that’s quickly carving its place in the modern landscape. What Wood and RCSQ have created here is something more than an EP, it’s a statement of purpose, a crystallization of what happens when roots-driven storytelling meets fearless experimentation.

Chicago’s own Leo XIV, the musical identity of Dylan Leo Azadi, continues his ascent through the stratosphere of alternative pop and R&B with his latest single, “Feel.” Following the momentum of his striking debut earlier this year (“Midas”), this sophomore release solidifies Leo XIV as one of the most captivating new voices in modern music. He’s an artist unafraid to stretch the boundaries of genre while delving deep into emotional and spiritual terrain.

With “For A While,” Billboard-featured New York City songwriter, vocalist, guitarist, and former Broadway performer Nicola Vazquez once again proves that few artists can match her ability to fuse raw emotion with polished musicianship. Known for her electrifying blend of pop, folk, and rock, Vazquez takes a softer yet equally commanding turn here — delivering a song that feels both intimate and cinematic, the kind of performance that lingers long after the last note fades.

Sabina Beyli is fast emerging as one of the most exciting young voices in alt-pop-rock, and her latest single, “Bad Habits,” solidifies that momentum with thrilling force. At just 22, she’s already figured out how to channel chaos into catharsis, turning self-reflection and emotional unrest into something both deeply personal and wildly anthemic. Out October 24, 2025, the track feels like a breakthrough moment, a fearless and unfiltered confession that hits as hard emotionally as it does sonically.From its opening moments, “Bad Habits” announces itself with raw immediacy. A moody, restless instrumental gives way to a thick, swirling blend of guitars and electronic textures that pulse with tension. Beyli’s voice cuts through the mix with razor clarity; strong, emotive, and laced with just enough vulnerability to make every lyric feel like a journal entry cracked open. The song thrives on contrast: soft introspection colliding with massive, cathartic choruses, quiet moments dissolving into sonic storms.

With Destined to Fail, released on October 3rd, 2025, Violet Love delivers one of the most emotionally charged and sonically daring EPs of the year. The New Jersey-born, queer Latin American artist lays bare the unfiltered truths of self-discovery, trauma, and transformation across three stunningly crafted tracks. Clocking in at just ten minutes, this EP feels both intimate and monumental, the kind of project that lingers long after the final note fades.

With Stray Bullet Blues, Minneapolis-based guitarist, composer, and educator Cody Steinmann proves once again why he’s one of the most exhilarating players in modern jazz. Across eight instrumental tracks spanning a generous 52 minutes, Steinmann brings his signature fusion of jazz and rock into sharper, harder focus, leaning into a bolder, electrified sound that brims with urgency and energy. The result is an album that feels both virtuosic and visceral and one that we are looooving.

Whitney have always had a gift for turning the everyday into something luminous, but Small Talk feels like the album where they’ve distilled everything they’ve been chasing since their debut into one cohesive statement. Set for release November 7th on AWAL, the Chicago band’s fourth record is not just their most affecting to date, it’s arguably their best, full stop. If their past albums flirted with brilliance, this one weds it, an effortless blend of their signature soft-focus soul, shimmering folk-rock warmth, and tenderly crafted pop that glows from the first note to the last.Julien Ehrlich and Max Kakacek spoke candidly with us about the making of this record, and what came through most clearly was a sense of freedom. Every instrument sits exactly where it should, every harmony breathes, and yet the album never feels overworked. Partially recorded in the confines of their apartment, it quickly proved you don’t need multimillion-dollar studio space to create something that’s as grand as this is.

September 26th at Italia Square in Tirana marked the explosive launch of this year’s Check In Festival, and one of the undisputed highlights of Electronic Night was a masterful DJ set from none other than Trentemøller. A legend in the electronic music scene, his presence alone electrified the crowd, but it was the way he curated the night that turned his set into a defining moment of the festival. Even better, we had an interview him backstage which you can check out below!

From the very first notes of their latest release, In Balance prove why Bakersfield might just be harboring one of the most exciting punk bands in the scene right now. Their new 7” record, Unforgivable, out via Transcendental Revolution, may only carry two tracks, but it punches well above its weight. Limited to just 100 copies pressed on translucent California Clear vinyl, the project feels less like a routine drop and more like a love letter to the urgency and spirit of modern punk.

With his latest release, “Jumping From So High” (out September 2th), Leo Sawikin cements himself as one of indie music’s most compelling rising voices. It’s a euphoric, dream pop–leaning track that glows with optimism and bursts of color, but at its core, it also reveals a songwriter with rock roots and a keen sense of craft. Produced by Seattle legend Phil Ek, the single feels expansive, cinematic, and effortlessly uplifting, a signpost of bigger things to come for Sawikin as he maps out an ambitious run of singles, an EP, and a full album rollout stretching into 2026.

With their latest release, First Stage Separation, University Drive prove they’re not just a band to watch, they’re a band that’s gonna make you feel what they’re serving up. Dropped on May 2nd, 2025, the Scranton, Pennsylvania rockers’ six-song EP is a thunderous ride, clocking in at just under half an hour. The record is a perfect storm of the band’s collective energy, with every member lending their hand to the songwriting and arrangements, creating a sound that’ll have you shook by the record’s end.

With “Time Thief,” rising singer-songwriter My Life As A Moth has crafted an alternative anthem that feels both deeply personal and gloriously unhinged. It’s the first glimpse into her forthcoming album The Parade Of The Starlet & The Broken Hearted, and it lands like a jolt to the system. It’s a dark, genre-defying piece of art that wrestles with the way anxiety can warp time itself, stealing moments that should be ours to live fully. The result is a brooding, beautiful storm of sound that cements her as one of the most exciting experimental voices in indie music right now.

With Elatseyi, Old Trees continues its mission to blur the line between disorientation and delight. The new four-track EP, crafted by Zachariah Watson, former frontman of Time Pilot and the restless mind behind this project, feels like a passport to a universe where folk traditions, electronic experiments, and global pop mutations coexist in harmony. It’s a record that thrives on contradictions: earthy yet otherworldly, chaotic yet carefully composed, playful yet deeply moving.